Have you ever wondered how to make a piece of paper into a flower, crane, or box? Well now you can! This class will be an introduction to the ancient art of origami. We will go over the basic folds and make origami that you can take home! No experience necessary!

Rather it be media or your everyday experiences, we oftentimes encounter how important it is to have leadership skills that can facilitate achievement of our goals.
So how can leadership skills be acquired? Is it something innate in our personalities? Can we actually mobilize people upon acquiring this skill? The course explores a few principles outlined in Dale Carnegie's 'How to win friends & influence people' and puts the principles in practical usage by in class demonstrations. Unlike typical leadership seminar, this is NOT based on personality testing, etc. This class puts more emphasis on practical skills one can immediate acquire to help mobilize people.


Prerequisites
There is absolutely no need to read 'How to win friends & influence people', but I personally would recommend it for those who are curious.

Magicians have been known to perform seemingly impossible tricks from an ordinary deck of cards, but what the public often doesn't know is that most tricks are based off of a small selection of "sleights" or techniques put together in new combinations. In order to confuse and fool, magicians practice these fundamental sleights for years, honing every motion. In this class, I hope to show you the sleights that eventually become tricks that blow away spectators. What you eventually do with this information is entirely up to you! Grab a deck of cards, and join me for an hour of craziness with cards!


Prerequisites
An open mind and willingness to dive into the world of magic :)

Learn the foundation knowledge required to turn an idea into a startup company from the top entrepreneurial minded students at Cornell. This class will focus on what makes a good idea, how to generate a solution, the importance of a team, and the art of the pitch. Learn about what resources are available to you as a student to make incredible things happen.


Prerequisites
We welcome all students of all interests and ages who are looking to solve problems in a creative way and collaborate with others.

Learn the fundamentals of chess strategy from one of the Nation's best chess players! We'll cover middle-game strategy, calculation and puzzles, and tips for continuing to improve (and have fun while you're doing it!)


Prerequisites
Knowledge of how all the pieces move.

Bughouse is a crazy, fun twist on chess for two teams of two where every piece you take can be used by your partner anywhere on their board! Learn from a pro and watch the pieces fly(literally!).


Prerequisites
Knowledge of how pieces move in regular chess.

A basic introduction to American Sign Language. Learn a little bit about the history, as well as the alphabet and how to introduce yourself!

Do you like music? Do you like video games? Then this is the course for you! Join us as we explore the role of music in video games, and what makes good video game music. We'll reveal the secrets behind the most catchy tunes of such greats as The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Halo through an interactive lecture format.


Prerequisites
Familiarity with Video Games is a must. Please play a few! Ability to read music notation would be helpful, but isn't required.

Do you like music? Do you like video games? Did you also like music and video games in "Video Game Music" last semester at SPLASH? Then this is the course for you! We'll review the secrets behind the most catchy tunes of such greats as The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Halo through an interactive lecture format, and then we'll go further, using real music theory to analyze these pieces in detail. Bring a pencil and paper!


Prerequisites
Video Game Music (at SPLASH!) will be helpful but is not required. Some level of basic music theory (the ability to read music, name chords as major or minor, and recognize a key signature) will prove very helpful.

Architecture surrounds us, but in more ways than you'd think; from furniture to flatware, Architecture is more than just buildings, spreading form the macro to the micro. In its purest form, it is a way of thinking, analyzing, problematizing, and creating something through that iterative design process.

In this course, we will explore how architects think, communicate, and create the myriad of objects and projects that they do.

Most of us know or have heard about people who need new organs, whether it be a heart, a kidney, or a skin graft, and through this, have learned about how difficult (and expensive) it is to attain them. However, doctors, scientists, and engineers are currently on the brink of developing the technology needed to eradicate this problem completely.

In this class, we will talk about current research on and applications of tissue engineering and artificial organs, and what the future of biomedical engineering looks like. We will also look briefly at the feasibility of related fictional technologies in the real world.


Prerequisites
High school biology will be helpful, but is not necessary.

Ever wondered how your computer works? This course will teach you the basics of how your computer uses simple electrical circuits to do math. You will get a chance to build your own hands-on circuit!

Synthetic biology is awesome, and no, it doesn’t just have to do with genetically modified organisms. There’s so much more we can do – space travel, smart cells, water filtration – if there’s a problem out there, synthetic biology has a solution! This class will be taught by members of the award winning Cornell University Genetically Engineered Machines Team (Cornell iGEM). The team uses synthetic biology as a platform to developing solutions to real world problems, and competes in the annual iGEM Jamboree in Boston. Come learn about synthetic biology with us! There will be hands on activities.


Prerequisites
Know what a gene/protein is, what DNA does, and the basic components of a cell

Existentialism is a philosophical social movement born in response to the growing absurdity and alien world of post-WWII Europe. Despite the typical image of Existentialists as clad all in black, drinking coffee, and smoking French cigars in Parisian cafes, existentialism's mission is to help average people handle everyday anxiety and sadness.

Students will participate in a forum-style discussion, conversing about the problems of being. We will discuss the thinking of classic existentialists, such as Kierkegaard and Heidegger.

With the musical "Hamilton" taking Broadway by storm, the American Revolution and the life of Alexander Hamilton have been hot topics. Now that Hamilton has taken center stage, it’s time for him to share the spotlight with his closest companion during the war – John Laurens.

John Laurens served alongside Hamilton in the Revolutionary War as both a soldier and an aide to George Washington. The two fought together, engaged in duels, and helped secure the American victory at the Battle of Yorktown. But perhaps the most significant part of Laurens’s life was his efforts to abolish slavery. Despite being a member of the South Carolina elite and the son of a wealthy slave owner, Laurens openly condemned slavery. He tried to bring about the end of the practice by proposing a plan to lead a regiment of slaves and grant them freedom after their service.

In this lecture, I will present a biography of the life of John Laurens, with a focus on his years serving in the Revolutionary War and his anti-slavery efforts. Through this class, you can learn about who he was, what he did, and why he deserves to have his story told.

Do YOU speak a language? Of course you do! We all do, whether it is spoken or sign language. But do you know what is the Stuff of Language? Do you know what your BRAIN has to know in order to speak a language?
It turns out that human language is among the most complex systems we know of, but we rarely thin about what makes a Language. What are the blocks of language? Can all sounds be language sounds? How are sounds organized in your brain? How do you make words and sentences? Why do we have ACCENTS? What happens when what you see does not match what you hear? Can you think without using language?
In this highly interactive class you will be able to explore these questions, see FMRIs of someone speaking, hear unexpected sounds of language, understand what the brain does when there is a mismatch between audio and visual signals, and much more!

Did you know that languages, similar to human beings, have "a life"? But, WAIT: what is HUMAN LANGUAGE, anyway? Do animals and computers speak? Is writing also language? Are language and thought the same thing?
During this fun and interactive course, we will explore questions such as "what is a language" and "how many languages are there"? We will talk about how languages are born, evolve, and, yes, also die. We will see how both the human brain and social interactions help to shape what we call language. We will learn that languages can be revived, we will talk about animal communication, and we will use software like SIRI and GOOGLE to try and come up with an answer to the matter of whether computers speak.

Throughout the 1st Century, B.C. the Roman world was rocked by social and political turmoil. By the end of the century the emperor Augustus had risen as the sole political power in Rome, ending the political freedom of the Republic.

How did the Romans, who prized freedom above all else, let their society completely fall apart? This course intends to lay out the key focal points in the socio-political struggle, and analyze the motives and desires of the people who drove this cataclysmic change in Roman society

Basic understanding of Roman political and social structure recommended but not advised. We'll be going over thing's like what the senate did and what the patricians and plebeians were, but the more basic familiarity the better, since it lets us get to the juicy stuff!

The collapse of Roman society in the 1st Century, B.C. coincided with the rise of powerful, politically-minded individuals. Seizing upon the disorder of the socio-political structure, men like Julius Caesar and Gnaeus Pompey fought for political control over the state, building up power through civil and military means. As rival politicians increasingly came into conflict the Roman world would be torn apart by nearly half a century of bloody civil war, from which only one man would emerge standing.

Continuing where H73 (The Fall of the Republic: How the Romans Lost Their Liberty) left off, this course will lay out the events leading to the Roman civil wars and will follow their course, leading to the ascension of the first emperor Augustus. Part I is advised for the fullest possible understanding of the content, but is not required

Do you love to read and write? Do you think you could be the next J.K. Rowling, John Green or Suzanne Collins? Would you like to learn how to write a novel in 30 days (or less)? Come join us as we discuss how to take our stories to the next level through short writing prompts and fun discussion. Plus, learn how to join the global event that is National Novel Writing Month!

Recently, the Netherlands recognized The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster as an official religion. You may laugh, but this also poses the serious question of what constitutes a religion and how our conception of religion has changed over time. Since the Renaissance, science and rationality replace the religiosity of the Middle Ages, and we believe that we have come to the age of light and reason (as opposed to the Medieval); however, in our secular age or in our modern era, what is the relationship between religion and science, religiosity and Secularism?

We will also talk about the rise of fundamentalism and nationalism in different religions, the modernization and secularization of religion and religion in a colonial and post-colonial context. Case studies may include: Hindu fundamentalism, Westboro Baptist Church and the Christian right and etc.


Prerequisites
Willingness to listen, think and discuss!

Enjoy a break for lunch with your friends! Please register for at least one lunch period on each day of the program.

This class introduces some special polynomials used in mathematics. Students will learn about polynomial solutions to differential equations that have applications in physics and chemistry. The class provides a toolkit for differential equation-solving using Victorian algebraic techniques that anybody with an understanding of basic differential equations and a solid understanding of algebra can understand. We will not assume any knowledge other than strong algebra skills and knowledge of calculus of a single variable (including sequences and series).


Prerequisites
Students must know how to solve single-variable differential equations, know what separation of variables is, know what initial conditions and initial-value problems look like, and deeply understand calculus of a single variable (power series, etc.). Nothing else is required except curiosity!

This class is an introduction to Google Android application development with Java. We will cover the basics of the activity lifecycle, UI layouts, and user interactions such as buttons and text fields. This class provides a launchpad for getting started with Android app development.


Prerequisites
Knowledge/Profiency in Java (i.e. you can write methods, you understand classes and you know the difference between 'public' and 'private')

Have you ever wanted to build your own website? It's easier than you might think. You don't have to be a programmer to create a functional, elegant website from scratch - you just need to know the markup languages HTML and CSS. This class will teach you the basics of using HTML and CSS to set up and format a website, with plenty of interactive examples. No prior experience is required.

In this course, I teach the basic components of category theory, focusing on objects, maps, and compositions of maps. From here, we learn about their application in commutative diagram proofs, which can be used to demonstrate so many different results that mathematicians have jokingly called them "general nonsense". In reality, the methods of category theory are remarkably intuitive and simple to learn, precisely because they reveal the contentless form of mathematics itself, drawing the interest of countless mathematicians, philosophers and scientists. Any math course that you've taken had ideas provable using these techniques, whether it was logic, geometry, algebra, or calculus. Learn them, and amaze your teachers by showing them your clever "nonsense proofs".


Prerequisites
Algebra (It would be good to have two years of algebra, and set theory would be even better, but they're not required.)

Without logic gates, computers as we know them would not exist. Logic gates are part of a blend of math and philosophy that lets engineers make computer processing units and other hardware. Although logic gates are usually associated with electronics, it is possible to make them out of nearly anything – water pipes, legos, billiard balls – even Japanese soldier crabs! In this class, we will make our own logic gates using redstone wiring in the popular video game Minecraft. Class will begin by learning about the context of logic gates – why you would want to use them, why they are important in computers – before moving on to specific types of logic gates. Each logic gate discussed will be demonstrated in Minecraft. Although we will not have time to build our own computers in Minecraft, knowing these gates will give you the basic knowledge you can use to someday make Minecraft electronics.

Say you're hanging a picture from two nails. But, you want to hang it as trickily as possible, so you're looking for a way to hang the picture so that it doesn't fall, but so that if either of the nails falls out, the picture will fall. How do you do it?

Or, say you take an empty soda can and twist it so that the top is rotated a full 360 degrees from the bottom. The top is in the same position relative to the bottom that it was originally. Is it possible to get the can back to its original position without rotating the top relative to the bottom?

This class will address both of these concerns and more, while drawing many pictures and going through some of the basics of one of mathematics' most beautiful subfields; namely, algebraic topology!


Prerequisites
It would be helpful to have seen proofs before.

If we color 10 pigeons with 9 colors, there will be two pigeons with the same color. This simple principle is extremely useful in mathematics, and can lead to amazing results that initially seem a lot less obvious. Here's an example: if there's a pigeon in every point of a plane, and we paint each of them red, green, or blue, there is always a rectangle with four pigeons of the same color!
In this class, we'll show why this and some other applications of this principle in mathematics, including the problem of approximating irrational numbers.


Prerequisites
Curiosity

This course builds off of previous web design material and is meant to complement the introductory web design course offered at Splash this year. JavaScript is a powerful programming language used to edit, control, and manipulate the contents of our website. We will learn how to enhance and edit all components of any website with only a few lines of JavaScript code.


Prerequisites
Previous web design experience, taking the Intro to Web Design course here at Splash is a big plus

Physics has come a long way in the past couple millennia, the physics being studied today may seem alien compared to what you will learn in high-school and even the first few years of college. This class aims to give insight into what physicists are studying right now without the advanced math requirements.
Topics will range from General Relativity and Blackholes to Quantum Field Theory and Particle Accelerators.


Prerequisites
Any experience with physics or ability to quickly "roll with" new information and axioms.

Speech is an important part of what makes us human, and physical principles allow us to describe and explain the way we talk. From explaining how sounds are made to explaining why languages change over time, many aspects of language described by linguists involve physics. This course, through real life examples and demonstrations, will connect physical principles like pressure, waves, and resonance to linguistic principles and phenomena such as the description of sounds in English, the creation of tone systems in languages like Mandarin, and the use of implosives in languages like Zulu.


Prerequisites
Students should have a basic understanding of Boyle's gas law (pressure varies inversely with volume) and principles of wave functions like amplitude and frequency.

We will discuss videos and accounts of the ways in which tigers stalk, chase, and kill their prey. This will go into basic ecology, biomechanics and anatomy, though no prior knowledge is assumed.

Come and bust some science myths with us! Along the way, we will show you some exciting science to impress your friends with.
We will discuss and demonstrate the inner workings of everyday phenomena, and how you can manipulate them to produce cool results!
Come join us for a day filled with bouncing eggs, Jesus custard, buttered toast, and MORE.


Prerequisites
Interest in everyday science, general chemistry, and biology.

What do you think a banana looked like 1,000 years ago?

Plants haven't always looked the way they do today. Join this class to learn about how the plants we eat have changed over time and what has caused these changes.

We're surrounded by green stuff, but what even is it. Most people have a hard time distinguishing plant species from one another. Join this course to alleviate your plant blindness and to gain a basic understanding of plant biology.

Look around you, and what do you see? Matter. Have you ever wondered what it is made up off? Atoms? Molecules? If so, how can we tell for sure? How do we know that particles like "electron" and "proton" exist? How can matter be mostly empty space?

In this class, we will answer these questions and explore the reasoning behind them. We will start our journey with the ancient Greek philosophers and their intuitive idea of matter and move on to the ideas of Dalton. From there, we will discuss the ingenuity of scientists like J.J. Thompsun and Ernst Rutherford, who experimented rigorously and came up with bold new ideas.

What might the first alien life we encounter look like? Why haven't we encountered intelligent alien life? What might life here on Earth tell us about life elsewhere? We'll be exploring these questions and more in a fun, highly dynamic, discussion-style setting. Find out what modern scientists believe might be lurking in the darkest corners of outer space!


Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of the following: glycolysis and the Krebs/citric acid cycles, elemental composition of biological macromolecules like proteins and nucleic acids, mass balancing of chemical reactions, cellular physiology (what's in the cytoplasm? what's a membrane? what do ribosomes do? etc.)

We'll use tacos to explore basic nutrition concepts including food choice, cooking, and digestion. Lecture will explain what makes foods healthy, what happens in the body when you eat, and why beans are special. At the same time, we'll demonstrate how to make healthy tacos from scratch--fajita style--with a tasting at the end.

In this class you will learn an entirely new formulation of mechanics called Lagrangian mechanics.
Instead of drawing free-body diagrams and finding the net forces acting on a body (Newtonian mechanics),
we will take a higher-level approach by finding the infinite dimensional saddle point of a quantity called
the action which is the integral of a function called the Lagrangian. From there, we can derive the
equations of motions of an object often with much less effort than if we used Newtonian mechanics!
It turns out that this approach can be extended to higher-level physics such as quantum
mechanics and field theories which I will briefly mention at the end of the class.


Prerequisites
Understand the meaning of $$\vec{F}=m\vec{a}$$; be able to do derivatives and integrals of simple function such as $$f(x)=x^2$$; do integration by parts, which we will quickly review at the beginning. So if you're rusty, don't worry!

For generations, humans have been fascinated by the stars, and gazed further and further into the night sky. However, as we began to know more and more about the universe, we quickly began to lose our ability to see all of it. For example, how do you "see" a black hole - an inherently "invisible" object?

Gravitational wave astronomy is a breakthrough method to understand our universe, by looking at the miniscule imprints of large objects on the fabric of spacetime. In this class, we will discuss diverse aspects of physics, from wave concepts to theories of gravity, as well as the ongoing (and recently successful!) race to find gravitational waves, and the many complications involved.


Prerequisites
While there are no formal prerequisites, strong performance in any previous high school level mathematics course(s) will be useful.

This course will provide students with a survey of history's great pandemics and the consequences they had for the people they affected.

Whether you think they're cool or scary, reptiles are an amazing group of animals with an array of characteristics that have made them the successful group they are today. In this class, you'll learn about their evolutionary history, their shared characteristics, and unique traits that help to specialize the main groups of reptiles.


Prerequisites
Be able to understand basic evolutionary concepts If you are afraid of snakes, do not take this course *will have LIVE reptiles*

A brief lecture based introduction to forensics techniques new and old. We'll start with some classic crime scene investigation techniques such as fingerprinting, glass fragmentation analysis, and fiber identification by microscopy. Then, we'll move forward to the modern age of analytical techniques and discuss spectroscopic forensics for identifying mystery compounds with an emphasis on infrared and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and mass spectrometry.


Prerequisites
Knowledge of basic spectroscopy (e.g. Beer's Law) helpful but not necessary. Enthusiasm for CSI reruns encouraged.

How did the universe come to be? What is its ultimate fate? How do we know?

We will explore the origin of the Big Bang theory and the evidence that supports it. We will also survey several theories on the "death" of the universe and discuss how new observations have shaped scientific speculation.

This course will provide a basic foundation of neuropsychological concepts. We will focus on discussing medical case studies and analyzing relevant MRI data to learn more about the brain structurally and functionally


Prerequisites
Some familiarity of the nervous system and/or brain anatomy.

The world around us is a fascinating place. This class will take students' knowledge of their hometown and state to the next level. We will be exploring various data sources and how we can use them to describe in detail the world around us from our block to our country. Examples of topics include demography through Census data, the economy through the
Bureau of Labor Statistics, housing and neighborhoods through the New York Times and non-profits, and opinion through polling data. Class will also include how to take data, turn it into policy, and solve problems.

Learn all about the challenges the US and its allies face in the 21st century from both conventional and unconventional threats

Throughout the history of warfare, naval power has been a decisive factor in determining the victor in a conflict. This course will examine the role the world's navies have played not only in wars, but also in the shaping of human society itself. The teachers of this course hope to take students on a journey from the early days of frigate battles to modern days, where submarines and aircraft carriers reign supreme. No experience with naval history is required.

Interested in automobiles? Interested in the world or the global economy? Interested in Asia? We'll be talking about all of this. We'll talk about what makes the car so interesting to analyze as a consumer product. We'll talk about why we still don't quite see any flashy Chinese-brand sedans or SUVs here in the States. We'll also look at the South Korean and Japanese car powerhouses which have managed to do so well worldwide.

Car aficionados and globally-minded thinkers all welcome!

An introduction to the unconscious mind and Freudian psychology. Through this class we will learn how to treat the "untreatable" patient, examining cases of "hysteria" through an exploration of case studies and associative thought. Topics covered will include bedside manner, psychic continuity, parapraxis, stages of psychosexual development, erotic and aggressive drive, signal anxiety, compromise formation, defense mechanisms and clinical psychology.

Have you ever wondered why your neighborhood is built the way it is? Ever thought "Why would they build it like that! That makes no sense!". Come join us for a discussion of the different tools you can use to help change your neighborhood. We'll conduct an exercise to better understand how to build consensus within your community, breaking down the barriers toward collaboration by designing and constructing a physical representation of this stigma.